So riding this week wasn't too intense:
Monday: 45 minutes at 150 BPM and 100 sit-ups with stretching
Tuesday: 1 hour at 150 bpm and stretching.
Wednesday: REST DAY! I had a beer.
Thursday: Rest day! no beer, but video games and a haircut.
But I've been thinking seriously about a few things:
1. Conditions don't matter.
-For a long time I've let the weather set my mentality for a race, which is bad. World Cup DH racer Sam Hill taught me that course conditions don't matter. He got 2nd in Champery after half of the field ran the course on dry conditions and he raced it in a downpour.
If he can kill it when he's on worse conditions than others, I have no excuse for my performance when we're all on the same course conditions. Granted, I don't respond well to cold weather, but I have some ideas for working on that. Longer, slower warmups and better clothing layers.
Also, I need to play to my strengths. I enjoy training on the MTB more than on the road, so I'm going to up the percentage of my training I do offroad. The rigid Superfly was fun, but I'd feel pretty beaten up after two laps. I've gotten my handling back to where it once was, so I'm switching to a Gary Fisher Procaliber. The suspension will help me descend and I'll get better traction on climbs, which is where I am hoping to kill it this year.
Wednesday, February 11, 2009
Sunday, February 8, 2009
no sweat
Saturday, February 7th
ride time: 1 hr 15 @ 145 bpm
stretching.
I'm not riding with plain water ever again. The difference between it and accelerade or something similar is too great to ignore.
On sleep: I've been sleeping much better thanks to both the obvious effects of, and the white noise of a humidifier. I've also started reading a bit before bed and I think it helps my mind calm down a bit. And calming down is something I don't do much.
ride time: 1 hr 15 @ 145 bpm
stretching.
I'm not riding with plain water ever again. The difference between it and accelerade or something similar is too great to ignore.
On sleep: I've been sleeping much better thanks to both the obvious effects of, and the white noise of a humidifier. I've also started reading a bit before bed and I think it helps my mind calm down a bit. And calming down is something I don't do much.
Saturday, February 7, 2009
not easy, just less hard
Thursday was a rest day, and I needed it. I threw my legs up and played video games all day. I ate lots of healthy tasty food, and drank a ton of water and massaged my sore legs.
Friday was scheduled to be harder than Tuesday (and Tuesday didn't go well).
Ride time: 2 hours at 138-160bpm and a cadence exercise.
My legs felt better than they had on Tuesday, and I made it to about the 1hr 15 mark without feeling sore or tired. My joints felt better than they had previously. Then at the 1hr 30 mark I did 5 sets of 1-minute high-cadence spinups with 2 minutes of rest in between. After the first two I remembered that I can really ramp it up when I focus. My pedal stroke is not where it was last year at this time, but these workouts will help. After the last one my legs were pretty tired, so I spun it out the last 15 minutes.
100 sit-ups and some good stretching.
Immediately following my workout I had some Clif Shot recovery (french vanilla, which tastes delicious to me) while I was stretching and doing sit-ups. I also had accelerade in my bottles during the workout instead of just water, so I felt way better than on Tuesday.
It wasn't an easy workout, I was just smarter about it this time so it was less hard. The biggest difference this time was that there was no doubt in my mind that I could do it.
Friday was scheduled to be harder than Tuesday (and Tuesday didn't go well).
Ride time: 2 hours at 138-160bpm and a cadence exercise.
My legs felt better than they had on Tuesday, and I made it to about the 1hr 15 mark without feeling sore or tired. My joints felt better than they had previously. Then at the 1hr 30 mark I did 5 sets of 1-minute high-cadence spinups with 2 minutes of rest in between. After the first two I remembered that I can really ramp it up when I focus. My pedal stroke is not where it was last year at this time, but these workouts will help. After the last one my legs were pretty tired, so I spun it out the last 15 minutes.
100 sit-ups and some good stretching.
Immediately following my workout I had some Clif Shot recovery (french vanilla, which tastes delicious to me) while I was stretching and doing sit-ups. I also had accelerade in my bottles during the workout instead of just water, so I felt way better than on Tuesday.
It wasn't an easy workout, I was just smarter about it this time so it was less hard. The biggest difference this time was that there was no doubt in my mind that I could do it.
Wednesday, February 4, 2009
a less hard day
Ride time: 1hr 10 minutes (15 short of the scheduled ride time) @ 145 bpm.
Stretching, 100 sit-ups.
Legs felt tired, but not completely fried.
Food: oatmeal, coffee, PBJ on whole wheat, V8 and Clif Shot recovery drink. And LOTS of water.
My legs were pretty smoked from yesterday, I have to admit. I was able to warm up for ten minutes, do a short, high-cadence burst in my easiest gear and settle in for about an hour at 145 BPM.
It was hard to find a good cadence/gear combination that put me in the HR range I wanted. I was either just below 138, or at 155, which I couldn't sustain with legs like the ones I had today. At one hour ten, I called it quits. My legs were simply done.
A bit more about yesterday: I got home and went to bed at 10 sharp. I turned on a humidifier for some white noise and slept until 8 this morning and felt much better. My legs weren't nearly as sore as they had been yesterday, but I could tell right away this morning that there wasn't much in them.
Stretching, 100 sit-ups.
Legs felt tired, but not completely fried.
Food: oatmeal, coffee, PBJ on whole wheat, V8 and Clif Shot recovery drink. And LOTS of water.
My legs were pretty smoked from yesterday, I have to admit. I was able to warm up for ten minutes, do a short, high-cadence burst in my easiest gear and settle in for about an hour at 145 BPM.
It was hard to find a good cadence/gear combination that put me in the HR range I wanted. I was either just below 138, or at 155, which I couldn't sustain with legs like the ones I had today. At one hour ten, I called it quits. My legs were simply done.
A bit more about yesterday: I got home and went to bed at 10 sharp. I turned on a humidifier for some white noise and slept until 8 this morning and felt much better. My legs weren't nearly as sore as they had been yesterday, but I could tell right away this morning that there wasn't much in them.
Tuesday, February 3, 2009
Hard day
ride time: 2 hours @ 145 BPM.
stretching.
Food: chicken pesto sandwich, pasta salad, yogurt with oat squares, apple, V8, FRS chews, and tons of water. I drank a ton of it today.
Legs felt fine, until 1h30 when I started to feel like the ride was wearing me out. By 1h50 I was aching. I don't mean I was feeling the burn, but that I was aching. My joints ached, which was odd, so I just spun it out easily for the last ten minutes.
I don't think I'm getting a cold. Usually my sinuses are the first alarm, and they're fine right now. With a lot of stretching my aching went away. I guess I just haven't pushed that hard in a few months, so maybe I wasn't good at reading my body.
Perhaps it was that I was riding in the morning, which I am notoriously bad at. Waking up at 8:30 and riding from 10 to 12 was not fun. I think I need to get up and move my body a bit more before I try going hard. We'll see how tomorrow goes. I also dove into the workout with no warmup, which might have contributed.
On second thought: I've NEVER ridden for more than 1.5 hours on a trainer. ever. Maybe I just don't know what my body does in that situation. Oh, well, stretching helped and I learned some things:
don't ride within one hour of waking up. Always warm up. drink more while on the trainer, and eat more while on the trainer.
My training plan says that if I ride outside I should increase my ride time by 33%, so maybe this means that riding 2 hours on a trainer is like riding 2.666 hours outdoors, which is an okay ride, especially at a high pace. Also, I pedal the entire time I'm on the trainer, and the road usually has a few spots to just cruise.
Today was hard, but this season is about one thing: Hardening the fuck up.
stretching.
Food: chicken pesto sandwich, pasta salad, yogurt with oat squares, apple, V8, FRS chews, and tons of water. I drank a ton of it today.
Legs felt fine, until 1h30 when I started to feel like the ride was wearing me out. By 1h50 I was aching. I don't mean I was feeling the burn, but that I was aching. My joints ached, which was odd, so I just spun it out easily for the last ten minutes.
I don't think I'm getting a cold. Usually my sinuses are the first alarm, and they're fine right now. With a lot of stretching my aching went away. I guess I just haven't pushed that hard in a few months, so maybe I wasn't good at reading my body.
Perhaps it was that I was riding in the morning, which I am notoriously bad at. Waking up at 8:30 and riding from 10 to 12 was not fun. I think I need to get up and move my body a bit more before I try going hard. We'll see how tomorrow goes. I also dove into the workout with no warmup, which might have contributed.
On second thought: I've NEVER ridden for more than 1.5 hours on a trainer. ever. Maybe I just don't know what my body does in that situation. Oh, well, stretching helped and I learned some things:
don't ride within one hour of waking up. Always warm up. drink more while on the trainer, and eat more while on the trainer.
My training plan says that if I ride outside I should increase my ride time by 33%, so maybe this means that riding 2 hours on a trainer is like riding 2.666 hours outdoors, which is an okay ride, especially at a high pace. Also, I pedal the entire time I'm on the trainer, and the road usually has a few spots to just cruise.
Today was hard, but this season is about one thing: Hardening the fuck up.
Monday, February 2, 2009
It's on.
My training program started today, so from now on my posts will be a little more formulaic.
Ride time: 45 minutes @ 145 BPM
100 sit-ups and stretching.
Legs felt: good.
Food: Coffee, Sweet Potato, ravioli, wheat thins, Carrot and Mango juice, and lots of water. omelet with veggies.
Mind felt: good.
Sleep last night night: 7.5 hours. I slept fine, but waking up was rough. I felt tired for a few hours before I finally got going. Maybe I need to try to go back to 9 hours of sleep.
Ride time: 45 minutes @ 145 BPM
100 sit-ups and stretching.
Legs felt: good.
Food: Coffee, Sweet Potato, ravioli, wheat thins, Carrot and Mango juice, and lots of water. omelet with veggies.
Mind felt: good.
Sleep last night night: 7.5 hours. I slept fine, but waking up was rough. I felt tired for a few hours before I finally got going. Maybe I need to try to go back to 9 hours of sleep.
A weekend floating on water.
January 31st, and Feb 1st, 2009
This weekend was a break for me. My actual training program from Whale starts Monday the 2nd, so I took the opportunity to go with my family to an indoor water park in Wausau. It was a pretty good time, and I chased my nephew Elliot around a bunch and splashed in the lazy river. The water creates some serious resistance training, and I think swimming might be a fun cross-training method.
I did eat fairly well this weekend, though:
Caesar salad with grilled chicken, turkey sandwich (two of them) carrots, lettuce, tomato, cappuccino, ice cream, and TONS of water. Swimming really dehydrated me and I didn’t pick up on it right away.
In the car-search area, there are a few models I’d like to test-drive: the Toyota Yaris, VW Rabbit (or Golf, same difference), Subaru Forester, Honda Fit, or Saturn Astra. Can you sense the theme?
This weekend was a break for me. My actual training program from Whale starts Monday the 2nd, so I took the opportunity to go with my family to an indoor water park in Wausau. It was a pretty good time, and I chased my nephew Elliot around a bunch and splashed in the lazy river. The water creates some serious resistance training, and I think swimming might be a fun cross-training method.
I did eat fairly well this weekend, though:
Caesar salad with grilled chicken, turkey sandwich (two of them) carrots, lettuce, tomato, cappuccino, ice cream, and TONS of water. Swimming really dehydrated me and I didn’t pick up on it right away.
In the car-search area, there are a few models I’d like to test-drive: the Toyota Yaris, VW Rabbit (or Golf, same difference), Subaru Forester, Honda Fit, or Saturn Astra. Can you sense the theme?
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